"In salt water it's been above the five-year average," said Jason Gasper, Juneau area assistant management biologist for the department's Division of Sportfish. "For last week it was about three rod-hours for coho. Last year (at this time) it was six rod-hours. The average is four rod-hours. So it's a little better than in the past."

Gasper said people have been catching cohos in Stephens Passage on the backside of Douglas Island and in North Pass, between Lincoln Island and Shelter Island. He said Funter Bay, on the Mansfield Peninsula of Admiralty Island, has been a particularly successful location for cohos.

Gasper said cohos, also known as silver salmon, are beginning to be caught in fresh water as well.

"I've been told by anglers that they're starting to show up in Montana Creek and Cowee Creek," he said.

Gasper said using bait in Montana Creek is prohibited year-round. Bait is allowed in Cowee Creek from Sept. 15 through Nov. 15, but prohibited outside of that window.

The possession limit for coho is two per day in fresh water and six per day in salt water for residents and nonresidents.

The coho fishing should begin to pick up in both fresh water and salt water as autumn approaches, Gasper said.

"It should start to get better as we get into September," he said. "I would imagine the Breadline will start picking up," he said of the salmon hot spot north of Tee Harbor.

Gasper said there are a number of reasons anglers enjoy fishing for silvers.

"It think it's abundance and it's a lot of fun to catch coho on light tackle," he said. "They're pretty aggressive, which makes them pretty easy to catch."

He said cohos are known to put up a good fight from the shore or from a boat.